Guam § 31 - Curfew Hours for Minors.

§ 31. Curfew Hours for Minors.

(a) Definitions. As used in this Section:

(1) Curfew Hours means:

(A) 10:00 p.m. on any Sunday, Monday, Tuesday,

Wednesday, or Thursday until 6:00 a.m. of the

following day; and

(B)12:01 a.m. until 6:00 a.m. on any Saturday or

Sunday.

(2) Emergency means an unforeseen combination of

circumstances or the resulting state that calls for immediate

action. The term includes, but is not limited to, a fire, a

natural disaster, an automobile accident, or any situation

requiring immediate action to prevent serious bodily injury

or loss of life.

(3) Establishment means any privately-owned place of

business operated for a profit to which the public is invited,

including, but not limited to, any place of amusement or

entertainment.

(4) Guardian means:

(A) a person who, under court order, is the guardian

of the person of a minor; or

(B) a public or private agency with whom a minor

has been placed by a court.

(5) Minor means any person under seventeen (17)

years of age.

(6) Operator means any individual, firm, association,

partnership, or corporation operating, managing, or

conducting any establishment. The term includes the

members or partners of an association or partnership and the

officers of a corporation.

(7) Parent means a person who is:

(A) a natural parent, adoptive parent, or step-parent

of another person; or

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(B) at least eighteen (18) years of age and

authorized by a parent or guardian to have the care and

custody of a minor.

(8) Public Place means any place to which the public or

a substantial group of the public has access and includes, but

is not limited to, streets, highways, and the common areas of

schools, hospitals, apartment houses, office buildings,

transport facilities, and shops.

(9) Remain means to:

(A) linger or stay; or

(B) fail to leave premises when requested to do so

by a peace officer or the owner, operator, or other

person in control of the premises.

(10) Serious Bodily Injury means bodily injury that

creates a substantial risk of death or that causes death, serious

permanent disfigurement, or protracted loss or impairment of

the function of any bodily member or organ.

(b) Offenses.

(1) A minor commits an offense if he remains in any

public place or on the premises of any establishment on

Guam during curfew hours.

(2) A parent or guardian of a minor commits an offense

if he knowingly permits, or by insufficient control allows, the

minor to remain in any public place or on the premises of any

establishment on Guam during curfew hours.

(3) The owner, operator, or any employee of an

establishment commits an offense if he knowingly allows a

minor to remain upon the premises of the establishment

during curfew hours.

(c) Defenses.

(1) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (b)

that the minor was:

(A) accompanied by the minor’s parent or

guardian;

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(B) on an errand at the direction of the minor’s

parent or guardian, without any detour or stop;

(C) engaged in an employment activity, or going to

or returning home from an employment activity,

without any detour or stop;

(D) involved in an emergency;

(E) on the sidewalk abutting the minor’s residence

or abutting the residence of a next-door neighbor if the

neighbor did not complain to the police department

about the minor’s presence;

(F) attending or traveling to or returning home

without detour from an official school, religious, or

other recreational activity supervised by adults and

sponsored by the government of Guam, a civic

organization, or another similar entity that takes

responsibility for the minor, or going to or returning

home from, without any detour or stop, an official

school, religious, or other recreational activity

supervised by adults and sponsored by the government

of Guam, a civic organization, or another similar entity

that takes responsibility for the minor;

(G) exercising First Amendment rights protected

by the United States Constitution, such as the free

exercise of religion, freedom of speech, and the right of

assembly; or

(H) married or had been married, enlisted in a

branch of the United States Armed Forces or the

National Guard or had disabilities of minority removed

in accordance with Article 3 of Chapter 4 of Title 19

GCA.

(2) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (b)(3)

that the owner, operator, or employee of an establishment

promptly notified the police department that a minor was

present on the premises of the establishment during curfew

hours and refused to leave.

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(d) Enforcement. Before taking any enforcement action

under this Section, a police officer shall ask the apparent

offender’s age and reason for being in the public place. The officer

shall not issue a citation, take into custody or make an arrest under

this Section unless the officer reasonably believes that an offense

has occurred and that, based on any response and other

circumstances, no defense in Subsection (c) is present.

(e) Penalties.

(1) A person who violates a provision of this Chapter is

guilty of a separate offense for each day or part of a day

during which the violation is committed, continued, or

permitted. Each offense, upon conviction, is punishable by a

fine not to exceed Five Hundred Dollars ($500).

(2) When required by §5104 of Title 19 GCA, as

amended, the Superior Court shall waive original jurisdiction

over a minor who violates Subsection (b)(1) of this Section

and shall refer the minor to juvenile court.